You Start With A Mistake
by Jaro-ship
Summary: Adrian was working on a rare and very unknown element of spirit - time travel. He decides to help right the wrongs of the future. Bust as every sci fi junkie knows, you don't mess with time like that. Very AU. Post-BP for all intents and purposes. HIATUS
1. Prologue

**I know I was going to wait until the New Year, but think of this as your early Christmas present! (And I mean a month early, people. Don't expect anything nicer.)**

**Except, it's late and a school night, so I'm shortening it into a prologue. :)**

**Usual disclaimers apply.**

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Dimitri had pushed me up against the tree, his lips oh so dangerously near mine, when I felt all the air rush out of me. The feeling was gone as soon as it came, and when Dimitri pulled back, I knew he felt it too.

"Rose?" he asked cautiously before grabbing my hand the second Adrian appeared at our side.

"Alright, lovebirds, break it up. We have to get a move on." He waved his hand impatiently at us, before turning back to the sheet of wavy air in front of him.

"Go where?" I demanded, marching up to him.

"To the future of course. I mean, yeah time travel seems a bit out of the ordinary and impossible, but you know that rescue mission you just convinced Janine was a good idea? Not so much for you and your little lover boy there. Now hurry, before the portal closes and everyone else is left alone in the future. Which, as every sci fi junkie knows, is a bad thing." Adrian crossed his arms.

I looked back to Dimitri, uncertainty written all over both of our faces.

"Seriously? Do you guardians make all of your decisions with this much thought and carefulness? That would be nothing gets done," Adrian fumed, glancing at the wavy air in front of him. "The portal" he had called it.

"I don't know..." I said slowly.

"Oh my God," Adrian said. He grabbed our arms and pulled us through.

Dimitri and I landed on our faces, while Adrian stepped in right after us like he did this all the time. There was a snap and I could hear the snarky grin creep its way onto Adrian's face.

"Now, what did I tell you all?" I stood up with Dimitri's help, and glanced around. Christian, Lissa, Eddie, Janine, and Alberta were all seated around a futuristic looking black glass table. Every single one of them looked freaked out. I tried to hide my shock as I saw a calendar displaying "DECEMBER 2023" tacked up on a wall right next to a doorway leading into a different room. This must have been the dining room.

"Adrian, what-" Lissa started, but he guided Dimitri and I to the empty two seats and shushed Lissa.

"All in good time, Dragomir," Adrian said. Dimitri sat down next to Janine warily, but I stayed standing. "All in good time."

A head poked itself through the doorway next to the calendar. Dark dirty blonde hair was pulled back into a messy bun, black rectangular glasses with piano keys on the side framed the girl's blue-gray eyes, and a small pimple on her chin that was slightly off-center with the rest of her features regarded the table silently.

She pulled herself fully into the doorway, and her guardian face broke slightly when she saw Adrian. She was very obviously a teenage dhampir. It was even obvious underneath the black sweater and dark wash jeans she wore, pale green slippers scuffing the hardwood floors as she strode over to where Adrian and I stood.

"Adrian," she greeted, her voice holding a Russian accent slightly thicker than Dimitri's. She hugged him tightly, and he returned the hug. "Why did you take so long this time?"

"Because I had to save up energy for bringing everyone else," Adrian said simply, pulling away from the hug. Adrian, last I had bothered to ask, was a little under six feet, and she easily looked him in the eye. I would bet money she was taller than Lissa.

"Oh." She smiled softly in a business-like way I had only seen Janine master, and looked around the table. "I see you brought everyone."

"Well, not everyone. I can't exactly teleport halfway around the world to go get your other family members and hold open a portal this far in the future, now can I?"

"Only if you practiced," she teased, poking him in his bicep. It was obvious to see that her muscles were well developed, despite being no more than fifteen; I probably had the same physique, and while most of it was catch-up in a half a year, I had been training for about three and a half years at this point.

Her eyes found mine for a second, and she muttered something in Russian before turning them loose on the table again.

"So, who are you?" Eddie blurted. "I mean, it seems like you're related to some of us."

"Oh, I am," she said. She smirked at Adrian before turning back to the table.

"Just get on with it," Adrian muttered, facing the living room with the monochrome furniture that peered into the monochrome dining room. The girl rolled her eyes at Adrian, and then her lips drew down into a frown.

"I guess the best way to do this is Band-Aid style." Her eyes lingered on Janine for a moment, before staring at nothing in particular, a habit Dimitri had told me I'd eventually develop.

"My name is Anastasia." Her eyes flicked to me and I felt like they were staring miles down inside of me. "Anastasia Belikov."

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**Review!**

**Hooray for total AU -ness! Trust me. It won't seem so odd. Adrian popping out of nowhere saying "We have to go time traveling! Now hurry up!" is the only weirdness of this story. It should get more believable starting....first chapter!**


	2. Chapter 1

**It's way late, and I probably shouldn't be writing at 3 in the morning. But whatever. Excuse the shortness.**

**Usual disclaimers apply.**

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"Wait, what?" Lissa asked.

"An. Na. Stay. Sha. Be. Li. Kov." Anastasia said slowly, pronouncing each syllable clearly. "Or do I need to go slower?"

"No, no., I'm just trying to process this information here. Belikov. As in Dimitri's daughter, Belikov?"

Anastasia rolled her eyes and said something in Russian before addressing Lissa.

"Hell yes, Dragomir, with my mother's tongue and feistiness. Now, any other questions?" A corner of her mouth tugged up in what I could only assume was a sarcastic smile.

"Who's your mother?" Eddie asked just as an older version of Dimitri walked in. He must have been the Dimitri of Anastasia's time. And honestly, he didn't look that different. His tan had faded incredibly, his hair was a bit longer so that the loose ends could now be pulled back with the rest of the ponytail, and there was something off about his eyes, but nothing else noticeably changed.

"Saved by the bell," Adrian said. "Pun intended."

"Glad to see you still have your sense of humor, Ivashkov," Older Dimitri said, crossing his arms across his chest.

"Glad to see you're still alive," Adrian tossed back.

Older Dimitri's eyes narrowed and I felt Anastasia stiffen next to me.

"Don't go there," Anastasia muttered to Adrian. "You know that is a touchy subject."

"My bad." Adrian held up his hands and then let them fall to his side. "How's Rose?"

I saw Older Dimitri stand up a little straighter; it seemed to be unconscious. The Dimitri next to me looked up at me, his eyes full of curiosity, but his guardian mask was otherwise impassive. I was curious, too, to know as to what I was up to in the future.

"Fine. Stressed, but fine. I can imagine that some of the stress will evaporate after the wedding, and now that Stasha and I moved back out here, she'll feel even less stressed out about everything."

"I am going to Alder this year, but the school's on grievance leave for three weeks, and then we have our three week winter break, so I'm not going back until mid-January. It is kind of nice to be home for my birthday." Anastasia's eyes sparkled. "It's tomorrow, if you've forgotten, Dad."

"How could I forget your birthday?" Older Dimitri teased as Anastasia circled around the table and hugged him. He kissed the top of her head playfully and I felt envy strike up in me.

Based on what I had heard, it seemed like I was a workaholic - and that Dimitri and I hadn't ended up together in the end. Well, in the same house, but not _together_ together. I could tell Dimitri and Anastasia were inseparable and that Anastasia was his world. Stasha, he had called her. It was a nickname, a diminutive of Anastasia, which seemed like a Russian name. Curios as to what her middle name was, I asked.

"Siobhan," Anastasia said. "It is Irish and a variation of a variation of my grandmother's first name. Although I am not Irish in any shape of form."

"You're forgetting David," Older Dimitri pointed out.

"I am not related to him by blood, though. Just marriage," Anastasia said. She pulled away and looked up at him. "Did _babuški_ send something in the mail? Or _moej tetej_?"

"You'll find out tomorrow," Older Dimitri said, ruffling her hair. Letting out a yelp of surprise, she grabbed his arm and twisted it in an uncomfortable position and pushed it against his back.

"And you said yesterday that I didn't have reflexes," Anastasia taunted.

"That was yesterday," Older Dimitri joked as she let go of his arm.

"Humph," Anastasia grunted, crossing her arms of her chest.

"So, is it just you two?" Lissa asked warily, shooting a look at me.

"Yep," Anastasia said. "Just me and my old man. We used to live in Russia, but Rose called in some favors and asked us to come babysit her litter." Anastasia's eyes clouded over.

"But she was nice enough to get an apartment extension built on to the back of her house," Older Dimitri pointed out.

"So? I still uphold the belief that she is a complete and total _suka_ and do not try to change my opinion, Comrade, because you know I am right. I don't even care what kind of relationship you had with her in the past; you know I am right," Anastasia huffed. Her nickname for him seemed to have a different effect on him than when I used it - it felt more like an old, inside joke between the two of them, not some stereotypical burn an unknowing American used carelessly.

"What's a _suka_?" Christian asked, fumbling over the pronunciation.

"It means 'bitch' in Russian," Older Dimitri said icily. A look matching his tone was on his face now, and he gave his daughter a dark look. "I'm sorry you have such a tainted view of your mother. Honestly, it should be me that receives the brunt of your hostility."

"I don't even consider her my mother, and you very well damn know it, too," Anastasia growled, pushing past him into the kitchen.

"Ten minutes!" Older Dimitri called out.

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Anastasia called back. I heard a door slam shut that seemed to be far away from where we sat.

"Rose is her mother?" Janine asked softly. I could tell her mind was running in circles.

"Yes," Older Dimitri said tiredly. "What do you Americans call it? A love child?"

Janine nodded.

"Anastasia's an accidental love child. She doesn't like Rose very much - she sees her as this woman who took her away from her home and friends, this woman who I've hardly mentioned or seem to know but quickly agree to with such a big commitment and request."

He paused, seeming to be lost in thought, and leaned against the doorway. "Stasha hasn't had a motherly figure in her life, no sort of maternal love. Just tough love and dry sarcasm from me. It's given her an edge that even Rose couldn't pull off. Looking back, I feel bad, horrible even, that I let that happen. She should've had someone in a mother-type position from the beginning. But right around the time she was born, I was too torn up to think straight."

"How'd you get custody of her?" Janine asked quietly. Everyone, even the Dimitri who had pulled me into his lap while his older counterpart was speaking, had their attention fixed on Older Dimitri. Even Adrian had stopped aimlessly looking around the boring room.

"My reputation was destroyed, even before that night happened." Younger Dimitri grabbed one of my hands and squeezed it tightly. "When Stasha was born, my career, my life, everything I had worked for and sacrificed for had been destroyed already, whereas Rose had her entire life ahead of her. I couldn't let her burden herself with a child and try to become a high-ranking guardian at the same time. It just wouldn't have worked out. I offered to take Stasha and let Rose live her life.

"I think, in the end, Rose wishes she had more time with Stasha, but is glad I raised her. Am raising her," he said, automatically correcting himself. "I forget that she's not even fifteen yet. She's been through and seen so much she shouldn't have ever had to see in her life....It has matured her years beyond where she's supposed to be."

It sounded like something Dimitri would do, giving up everything in order to prevent me from doing the same. The only thing that I wondered about was when he said "_My reputation was destroyed, even before that night happened." _I knew what he meant by "that night" but the reputation part was a mystery. I was about to open my mouth when Older Dimitri backed up a few steps and checked the time on the clock.

"I gotta go. Ivashkov, you can take them down to watch if you want. The others won't be home until after we're done. Excuse me, I have to go drag my daughter out of her funk," he said, leaving us at the table. The faraway door slammed again as I heard him leave.

"Watch what?" Lissa asked, her eyes warily resting on Dimitri and me.

"Well, in a Belikov's eyes, just because school's out doesn't mean that you don't stop practicing," Adrian said, winking at her. I felt that there was a double meaning to his words, but I wasn't quite sure what the second meaning was. I did know the first one, however.

"We're going to watch a practice session," I noted as Adrian's trademark cocky grin creeped back onto his face.

"Yes, Rose, we are. I'm sure you're familiar with them." And with that, Adrian turned and lead us down into the basement.

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	3. Chapter 2

**Cathleen, no, that's not my intention at all....It'll become clearer in the next few chapters. I'm a total Rose/Dimitri supporter - I'd feel horrible doing something like that. :)**

**And now it gets confusing with Rose narrating about herself. xD And this story and my other stories work on different timelines, FYI.**

**Usual disclaimers apply.**

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The basement wasn't much different than the rest of the house - black training and exercise equipment with stone gray walls. There wasn't any carpeting, and it felt extremely cold.

"Do not worry," Anastasia said, breezing past us in the shortest pair of workout shorts I had ever seen, along with the world's tightest black tank top. "It will warm up soon enough."

Lissa gave her a doubtful look and pulled her sweater closer around her. Dimitri nudged me as his older self waked down the stairs. His eyes held a knowing look, and instantly, memories of those cold winter months running for hours flashed through my mind.

As did what had happened just the night before in our time, but I shoved those thoughts away. I couldn't be distracted with those thoughts, not with my mother and Lissa in the same room as Dimitri and I.

There was nowhere to sit, so we took up positions on the floor and against the wall on the opposite side of the basement. While big and expansive, it was easy to hear the other two down at the other end. Dimitri and I ended up standing off to the side from everyone else.

Anastasia had dropped down on one of the numerous mats scattered all over the cold stone floor. She had even dropped down into a stretching position like she did it every day - and knowing Dimitri, that probably wasn't so far off. Older Dimitri had sat down in front of her, legs crossed Indian-style and watching his daughter - technically our daughter - carefully.

He looked like he was about to say something when Anastasia tilted her head to the side and teased, "Out with it, Dad."

"How was last night?" Older Dimitri asked in response. Anastasia shrugged and moved to stretching her arms from her sitting position.

"Fine, I guess. I had the usual nightmares and Andre was there. But it was not bad enough that you or Rose needed to check in on me." Her tone was knowing and it was obvious my older self and Dimitri did have to check in on her.

"I'm sorry," Older Dimitri said quietly, looking at the floor.

"It is not your fault, really. At least there was not any screaming." She paused and switched arms, pulling her left arm down behind her back towards the floor. "Well, not a lot of screaming. Like I said, Andre was there."

"As he is every night."

"Dad, I will be fourteen tomorrow. I am not stupid. Besides," she said, leaning back a little bit. "Do I look the least bit pregnant to you?"

"Just checking," Older Dimitri said roughly. "Start stretching faster. You're wasting time."

Anastasia rolled her eyes and kept moving at her current pace.

"I'm serious, Stasha," Older Dimitri said. "Faster."

"You of all people should know that stretching takes time. I cut off the running, if thou were observant enough." Anastasia started rolling her head around slowly.

"Shuddup," Older Dimitri replied. His face broke into a warm smile. "Stop being a step ahead."

"Not a step ahead, Dad," Anastasia corrected. "Three steps behind. You know my philosophy."

"Yes, the same one your grandfather upholds. The same grandfather, I might add, that is currently sitting in some state prison in Maryland."

"Dad," Anastasia paused in her stretching and regarded her father with a critical eye. "You must be the last person to know that Janine bailed him last night."

"That doesn't change the fact that he's wanted in thirty-two states and fourteen countries."

"For stuff he did not do," Anastasia retorted.

"Be quiet and go get the bands."

"Really, Dad? We did those yesterday and the day before that and the day before that and the entirety of last week."

"They're good for you. Now move before I take something away."

"Airless threats," Anastasia muttered angrily, storming off to the other side of the basement to grab what looked to be four cut up pieces of a giant, thin, blue rubber band.

"There ya go," Anastasia said, dropping two of them in front of Older Dimitri.

"Just repeat yesterday," Older Dimitri instructed, and he rolled to turn the stereo on. Some weird Russian music came blaring out of it.

"Did you steal it?" Anastasia asked as Older Dimitri moved back to his original position.

"Quiet possibly," Older Dimitri replied, nodding his head.

They worked with the bands for an hour. The Dimitri next to me would point things out to me. I was silent the entire time, but I kept watching the rest of our little time traveling party look at Dimitri and me. Adrian's eyes were indifferent - he was watching Anastasia and Older Dimitri work the entire time. Lissa's eyes, however, were filled with betrayal and hatred. My mother's eyes mirrored Lissa's. Everyone else was in a state of disbelief and, on Eddie's part, a little shock. I tried to ignore it, but it nagged me in the back of my mind.

When the hour was over, Older Dimitri disappeared quickly. Anastasia took her time turning the stereo off, rearranging the mats, putting the resistance bands back, taking her CD out of the stereo. She rearranged the mats for a few more minutes before Christian finally spoke.

"What's with the procrastination? I mean, I know Rose is really good at it, but you've got it mastered down to a T."

"Rose is home," Anastasia said simply. She put her finger to her lips. "If you are quiet enough, you can hear them walking around."

We lapsed into complete silence, and then the sounds of two people walking around, their weight putting pressure on the wood, filtered through.

"So?" Christian asked.

"You will see later," Anastasia said vaguely. She became quiet again, looking up at the ceiling with worry. When a particularly loud creak was heard, she cringed.

"Stasha?" I heard my older self call out. "You down there?"

"Yes!" Anastasia yelled in response.

"Come upstairs," Older Rose yelled back.

"Just a second," Anastasia replied loudly before dropping her head to our standing group. "I hate that bitch."

"Just go," Adrian urged, and she shot him a look before darting up the stairs two at a time. Adrian motioned for us to follow, and we were lead by Anastasia into the large kitchen.

I saw my older counterpart in a complete guardian outfit, over thirty moljina marks on the back of my neck with the promise mark nestled in the hairline. My hair, now lighter than mine currently was, was pulled up into a large, messy bun. A full glass of wine sat on the large kitchen island smack in the middle of the kitchen. Older Dimitri was leaning against the sink, arms crossed over his chest. My head was in the refrigerator.

"There," I said, pulling out a small slab of cheese. She saw us. "Oh, hi." I watched myself give a curt nod towards Adrian, which he just returned in response. Anastasia was sitting on the counter next to the stove.

"Adrian brought the entire group this time," Anastasia said simply, looking at her nails.

"I see," I said. I unwrapped the rest of the cheese and put it on a small plate, a tiny cheese knife resting on the edge. "So how was the session?" I asked, swallowing a mouthful of wine.

"Fine," Anastasia said coldly.

"Stasha," Older Dimitri reprimanded. "What did we talk about yesterday?"

"I repeat: not my fault." Anastasia started swinging her long, tanned legs.

"Don't worry. I've got it under control," Older Dimitri said as my older self opened her mouth. He moved around the island and pulled her in, giving her a quick kiss on the head.

"Please don't sit on that," Older Rose said, pulling away.

"Please don't sit on that," Anastasia mocked, jumping off. "Do you talk sometimes, just to hear yourself talk?"

"Anastasia," Older Dimitri snapped. "Room. Now."

"God," Anastasia replied, leaving the room. "Now I can't even voice my own opinions! I thought America had this great thing called freedom of speech!"

"Dimitri, I-" My older self said.

"What did I say before?" The mentoring side in him was back, although not as obvious. The other Rose seemed to notice the shift, too. He started rubbing his hands up down the top of her arms and shoulders.

"Not to worry, that you've got it under control, but-"

"Then take the advice." He kissed her forehead and left.

"I can't handle her," Older Rose said, downing half the wine glass. She leaned against the counter, swirling the contents around. All the lights were on, and the kitchen held the monochromatic theme with black and silver steel appliances. The counters were a dark granite and a cluster of pots and pans was raised above the kitchen island. It was easy to see across the room.

"Why aren't you-"

"Wondering about this?" Older Rose asked, gesturing towards the group. "Adrian does this all the time, popping in and out. It was cool in the beginning, but now it's just comforting, especially after the past few years."

"Glad to be of assistance," Adrian said warmly and his smile was very uncharacteristic - I had only seen him smile like that when he dream walked into my dreams. But as quick as the sweet moment fired up, it died down, and Adrian's smile turned into a cocky grin again.

"So what's been going on out here?" Adrian asked, more for our benefit than his own.

"Oh, you know, the usual," Older Rose said, eating a small slice of cheese. "Lissa's coronation is coming up, so it's running around for hours a day. She's got a rotating group of guardians going right now, which is why I can even come home, but once Tatiana hands off that throne, I get to move in with her. It's a shame, too. This house definitely wasn't decorated in a day. And then there's the wedding coming up, which means I have to take off time for that. The process is a bitch and a half, because they have to rearrange every singles guardian. And Christmas is about three weeks away, which is it's own rant. I'd ask about you, but I already know." She winked at me and finished the wine.

"Why do you still drink that stuff?" Adrian asked, grabbing the bottle out of the refrigerator.

Older Rose shrugged. "Keeps the memories alive, I guess. Although I haven't been drinking as much lately. Only on holidays and I-need-to-kill-Tatiana days."

"Huh," Adrian muttered, putting the bottle back. "Doesn't white get boring after a while, though?"

"Not with the right cheeses," Older Rose said, a teasing smile on her face. It seemed like an inside joke they shared.

A car door slammed outside, followed by several high-pitched squeals and a woman's voice, yelling to get calm. The side door next to where Dimitri and I stood flung open and three kids, whose ages must have ranged from ten to five raced inside. The fourth kid, looking a lot like Adrian, headed for my older self. She couldn't have been older than three.

"Aunt Sydney got a new car," the little girl said.

"She did?" Older Rose said, picking her up and resting the girl on her hip.

"Yes, I did," the woman said, brushing snow off her coat. This must have been Sydney. A gold, shimmering tattoo decorated her face, which detracted from her human features.

"Finally got rid of the Red Hurricane?" Older Rose teased, giving the little girl a tiny piece of cheese.

"It's in the shop indefinitely," Sydney said stiffly. She saw us and flashed us a brief, tight smile. "And you know how I feel about that."

"I do." Older Rose paused. "So how was the car ride?"

"Ivan needs to learn to shut his mouth," Sydney said carefully, as though she were cleaning up her mouth on the spot. "But the others were fine until he got _them_ wound up, too. Where's the freak?"

"Dealing with Stasha," Older Rose said. She didn't seem to mind the insult aimed at Dimitri.

"Out of control again?"

"More like I could never deal with my clone as well as he does. It's only with her do I realize how much Dimitri and I are alike."

Sydney grunted in response.

"Hey, Lena, go take your coat off, okay? Mommy needs to talk with Aunt Sydney."

"Only if you tell me what's for dinner," Lena said.

"It's a surprise," Older Rose replied, setting her on the ground.

"Okay," Lena said simply.

"She's so much like him," Sydney said, and I got the feeling she wasn't referring to Dimitri anymore.

"Yeah," Older Rose agreed softly. "Did you know it's been four years next February?"

"Wow," Sydney said. They were silent for a moment before Sydney spoke again. "So what's the surprise?"

"Whichever take-out place's pamphlet I pull from the drawer," Older Rose joked. "Lissa's stress levels are through the roof. Today was yet another fitting day. I can't handle making anything right now."

"Have fun, then. I'm off to go have a quick meeting with some higher-ups about promotions for some of the others," Sydney said vaguely.

"Tell Abe I said hi," Older Rose said.

Sydney grinned. "I will. Take care."

"You, too."

Sydney left and my older counterpart looked towards me.

"Reach behind you in the drawer you're leaning against and pull out something randomly."

"Joe's," I said, handing the pamphlet to Older Rose.

She flipped through the colored flaps. "So what do you all like on your pizza?" She asked, an all-knowing smile on her lips.

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**Review!**


	4. Chapter 3

**Looks like I'm loosing people....Ack, explanation comes up in the third paragraph! And it's short for now because it's nearing Christmas Break and my teachers are shoving in all the homework they can before we disappear for two weeks. :)**

**Usual disclaimers apply.**

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Somehow, Adrian had moved us along into Anastasia's room and then disappeared. Lissa gave him a glare as he closed the door behind him.

"Can we have a little explanation here? Because our tour guide just took his lunch break," Christian said, a ton of force in his voice. Anastasia was seated at her desk, tapping away at the keyboard on a laptop, and she swiveled around to look at us. She pulled her glasses off and rubbed her eyes.

"Accident with a magnifying glass and the sun, third grade," she explained quickly. Her voice slowed down considerably. "Um, sure, I guess. Bu you all have to not say anything, got it?"

A murmur of agreement rippled through the group.

"So," Anastasia started. "You guys now know about-" She motioned towards Dimitri and I. Several heads turned and looked at us.

"Yay-ers. So anyway, you know that rescue mission that is about to happen? Yeah, it doesn't work out so great for Dimitri. This Strigoi guy, Nathan, basically takes him and turns him. Awful, right? A month and shit load of events later, my mom, Rose, is dropping back in to St. Vlad's because she just got back from a failed mission to go kill my dad. She heard from her father - yes, Janine, I know him, too-" She looked to a blushing Janine.

"Whose name is Abe." Anastasia kept going like she had this memorized. "He told my mom about this guy who supposedly saved a Strigoi. Skip forward about a year, and Rose ended up finding the guy who did his weird voodoo spirit magic with the help of Sydney, an alchemist my mom met in St. Petersburg. Something minor goes wrong, so my dad ends up turning into a Moroi, hence why Sydney calls him 'the freak'. My mom, dad, and a bunch of now family friends, including Lissa, Christian, and Adrian, all go out to celebrate at a, shocker, nightclub-bar type thing. And I'm sure we all know what happens when certain people get drunk."

An awkward silence pressed in on everyone as we filled in the blanks.

"But, anyway, when I was born, my dad was pretty much disgraced slash ready to be exiled, so he figured that since my mother was not even twenty yet, that he would raise me and let my mom build her career and all that other mushy stuff he said to her when I was born. That's the Cliff Notes version, mind you." She tilted her head to the side. "Any questions?"

"How do you talk so fast?" Eddie asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Practice," Anastasia threw back. "Any others? No? Good, 'cause I've got a readership to please." She turned around to her laptop.

"Readership?" Janine asked, speaking for all of us.

"I am the wonderfully unknown famous author of _Sucks To Be You?_, the leading media outlet for adolescents and teens around the world. All I have to do is cryptically rant about random things, like the whole bit with my current living slash parental situation or world hunger. Y'know, things teens can actually relate to." She talked and typed at the same time, putting her glasses back on.

"World hunger?" Lissa mouthed. Christian just shrugged in response.

"Well, there was just that one post about world hunger because I happened to be hungry at that moment. This week's topic is about, shocker, one parent trying to act like they fit in to your life, when you've only recently met them. Pretty sweet shit, if you ask me. And yes, talking quickly and typing even faster is another ninja skill I have developed over the years."

"Do you ever sleep?" Dimitri asked.

"In fact, I do. It is just that, whenever I am awake, I move at a million miles an hour, and my brain just slighty quicker than that. Sometimes, I will speak in sentence fragments, my mind is zooming along so fast." She paused her rapid typing and then tapped her foot against the dark hardwood floor. She punched in a few more buttons and then muttered, "I think that's good. You guys want to read it?"

For speaking like she was about to become mute the next second, her English was rather precise and she hardly used contractions. That was the amazing part.

We all sort of looked at each other and then crowded around her. Anastasia adjusted the screen and page layout so it was all on one page. "It is a little on the Larry side, but whatever. I guess that is what I am doing in the first place." She didn't elaborate on who Larry was.

_So how was your Monday? Mine was complete crap, to say the least. Normally I'd go on, but I'm not in the mood to talk about how I got to sit around and get yelled at by my mother for not doing *extra* chores._

_I am, however, in the mood to talk about my mother. Well, as you all know, I don't consider the PMSing bitch to be my mother - I don't really consider myself to have ever had had a maternal person in my life - but for all intents and purposes, she's my mother for this post. Yippee! Moving on._

_You all can sit on your kitchen counters (you know, the ones that are used as a dumping ground by your parents), can't you? Apparently I'm not allowed to. So I get yelled at by my mother to get off the fucking counter. (Minus the curse word; that's me getting it out of my system.) Are you, though? Let me know in the comments. Im curious to know. ;)_

_And, of course, no short-lived fight would ever be complete without the loving, yet stern, lecture from the daddio. Don't get me wrong - I love my dad. He's the only reason I haven't run off on my own; much unlike my mother. But I digress._

_So the talk is filled with the usual stuff. Be nice, accept your mother, try to tolerate her and her rules, yadda yadda yadda. Don't you just hate it when parents try to force the other parent on you? Like, seriously. It drives me insane sometimes._

_On a final note, the wedding's in two weeks! I'm not telling anyone where because the last thing I need are my personal Internet stalkers taking on the new, fun role of wedding crashers. The movie, by the way, is hilarious. :) But don't worry - I'll be posting my Photoshopped pictures afterward, with the bitch purposefully looking horrible. If I'm in a good mood, a few pictures will go untainted._

_Remember, hug your brother, eat a banana, light a sweater on fire, and stick a ShamWOW! towel down your best friend's pants._

"That was..." Lissa trailed off, unsure of what to say.

"Interesting," Alberta supplied, standing up straight.

"Yes, yes it was." Janine crossed her arms. "So you don't feel any positive emotions for Rose?"

Anastasia snorted. "You're one to talk." She clicked a few links, and then the black, red, and purple layout of her blog sat on the screen with the new post gracing the top of the screen underneath the words "Think it _Sucks To Be You?_ Well, think again!" in big, black font.

A fist pounded on the door before a gangly, miniature version of Eddie sauntered in.

"Belikov," he greeted, taking a seat on the edge of the bed.

"Castile," Anastasia threw back, confirming my theory. "Meet the eighteen-year-old version of your father." She waved her hand in the direction of Eddie.

"Howdy," he said, waving a hand in a semi-arc in the air. "New post up?"

"Just posted it," Anastasia said proudly, opening up her e-mail. "Your mother stressed from playing Let's Take Rose's Place yet?"

The boy nodded. "And we all know how she deals with stress."

"Do not tell me she blew your basement up again with those crazy alchemist concoctions of hers."

"Maybe."

"David!" Anastasia yelped. She blushed and lowered her voice. "You filthy little liar."

David shrugged. "Quite possibly. But then again, it could be the truth."

"I am putting money on that it is a well placed and slightly convincing lie to get your girlfriend to think that your boring life has some action in it." Anastasia smirked at David.

"I'm touched you can read me that well." David feigned mock hurt and dramtically put a hand over his heart, flopping on Anastasia's bed.

"Speaking of toasters, what are you doing here?" Anastasia switched the subject oddly and it recieved a few chuckles from Eddie and I.

"Your mom invited _mi familia_ over to your _casa_ for dinner."

"As if we need to spend more money on pizza. Your Spanglish needs a ton of help, FYI."

"I realize that," David said, sitting up and kissing Anastasia on the side of her forehead. "My mother seems to think that it's annoying."

"If I was just your best friend, then I would have kicked your ass into a brick wall and said, 'Hell yes your mother is right'."

"You're a great grilfriend, you know that?" David teased, pulling Anastasia's chair closer and burying his face in her hair. "Strawberry. Any important events coming up?"

"Not within the next week. I was just stressed earlier. Strawberries and coconuts help me relax, you know that."

David just smiled, pulled away, and then made for the door. "I'm going to go round up the halfies. You coming?"

"Gimme a sec," Anastasia said impatiently, waving her hand dismissively. David slipped out of the room.

"Boyfriend?" I asked, bumping her shoulder with my hip. She blushed in a very Janine-like way.

"So? I may only be turning fourteen tomorrow, but that doesn't mean I am completely clueless about guys. Besides, David and I connected extremely quickly when my father first moved over here. I had a few crushes back in Saint Petersburg, just so you know."

"Ah," I said with all-knowing tone.

"Shut up!" Anastasia pleaded playfully, swatting me harmlessly. "I think I smell the pizza. C'mon. I have not eaten since, oh, God, eight in the morning. Last one there doesn't get seconds."

Lissa repeated what Anastasia had just said.

"Oh, believe me." Anastasia winked at us. "If you aren't assertive and just let the others walk over you, you'll go to sleep hungry. Don't be afraid to get your elbows covered in tomato sauce."

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	5. Chapter 4

**Hooray for snow!**

**Usual disclaimers apply.**

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"She's something else isn't she?" Lissa asked me in an all too calm tone. She was hiding her thoughts and feelings from me rather well, which set off another round of alarm bells.

"What's really on your mind, Liss?" I stopped walking and grabbed her arm, forcing her to a stop. I looked her straight in the eye. "Because you don't normally act like this and I know that finding out that I've been keeping this huge secret from you must be more than unbearable." The others had stopped walking, too, sensing a fight.

"I'm just hurt that you'd keep something like that from me," Lissa admitted, a steeliness to her eyes and posture I hadn't seen before.

Christian shifted weight in his feet. I saw even Janine tense in the corner of my eye.

"The fact that I was too blind to see it is a blow to the self-esteem, too. And ever since Anastasia revealed who she was, you two seem to be even closer." Lissa's hands had clenched into fists, but she calmed down and flexed her fingers out. I felt a shimmer of darkness bubble up inside her, but it disappeared before I could do anything about it.

"Have you ever thought that maybe I'm sticking to Dimitri just a little bit more because I'm trying to wrap my head around the fact _that we have a daughter_. I'm not sure I even want to hear the story on how it became an option in the first place." I crossed my arms over my chest.

Lissa opened her mouth to say something when Lena and an older girl came racing down the hallway, weaving in between our legs.

"Give it back, Christi!" Lena shouted, her short, little legs pumping up and down hard to keep up with her sister.

"Only if you can catch me!" Christi shouted, flashing Lena a very arrogant, Adrian-like grin. She took off even faster down the hallway. Lena gave up near me, throwing herself down on the floor and crying. Anastasia walked to where Lissa and I were standing and picked the girl up.

"What did Christine take this time?" Anastasia asked softly.

Lena sniffled. "She took my doll. The one you gave me from Russa." She didn't pronounce the "sh" sound in Russia that well.

"Ah," Anastasia said. She started walking again, and I kept pace with her, pushing my issues with Lissa to the back of my mind. We would talk later.

The living and dining rooms were a state of chaos. I watched from behind the leather loveseat as my and Dimitri's older counterparts attempted to keep Lena's older brothers (who were running in circles around the dining room table) under control while Christine sat in the armchair by the window and combed the hair of Lena's doll. An older Janine stood behind the table and was going through the pizza boxes and recutting the slices so they'd be deeper. Next to Janine stood an unknown Middle Eastern man whose flashy, colorful scarf caught my eye. Sydney and an older Eddie sat at the table, talking with David.

I felt so sorry for myself and the situation I would one day be in.

"It's a party, isn't it?" Older Eddie asked, catching sight of us.

"No kidding," Older Janine said. She poked the man next to her with the pizza sauce-covered knife. "Go get the plastic stuff, will you Ibrahim?"

He smiled at her and then us and disappeared into the kitchen. I vaguely remembered the Queen saying his name in scorn during her whole "I'm plotting against everything I think you want" speech after Victor's trial.

"That's it," Older Janine said, throwing the knife in the pizza box and scooping up the younger of the two boys. "Stop driving your parents mad."

"You can't tell me what to do, Grandma," the boy said.

"Oh yes she can," Ibrahim said, setting the plastic plates and cups on the table.

"Ooooooh, you better do what Grandpa says, Alex," said the other boy. I assumed he was Ivan. "You might get an eyebrow burned off."

"Shut up, idiot!" Alex yelled. "He wouldn't do that!"

"Shut up, moron, yes he would!" Ivan shouted back.

"Shut up, bastard, no he wouldn't! Grandpa loves me more than you!" Alex shrieked in response.

"Alexander!" Rose said sharply. "We don't use that language around here. Clean up your mouth and you won't go to bed hungry tonight."

"Then how come I hear you and Dimitri using it all the time?" Alex retorted. Janine had set him down.

"Because we're the parents and you're not. When you have your own kids, you can say it however much you please, but right now, the word is off limits."

"Dimitri's not my daddy," Alex snapped. "My daddy's Adrian and he's dead." Alex pointed up at Dimitri. "He's the scary Strigoi who you're in love with."

My entire group stiffened, and Adrian, sitting underneath the large window in the living room that took up over half the wall, looked down at the ground.

"And where did you hear those rumors?" Rose asked, squatting down in front of Alex.

"Brian Lazar," Alex said simply. Ivan shoved Alex by his head.

"It's Brian Zeklos, you dummy," Ivan said.

"Whatever!" Alex shouted, pushing Ivan in response. "Stop trying to act smarter than me! 'Cause you're not!"

"Boys," Ibrahim warned. His eyes flashed, and both Alex and Ivan immeadiately stopped their bickering. Alex still crossed his arms and glared at Ivan when Ibrahim wasn't looking.

Anastasia finally looked at us and rolled her eyes, setting Lena down on the ground.

"Momma," she said, reaching out to my older self. Rose picked her up. "Christi stole my doll."

"No I didn't!" Christine said defensively.

"Yes you did!" Lena yelped. "My name is on the bottom in Russan. It's the same name as babusska."

"She's so cute," Dimitri muttered in ear, slipping an arm around my waist. I noticed David and his family had fallen silent, watching the family drama unfold. I nodded in response.

"And it's pronounced more like 'babushka'," Dimitri added quietly, never taking his eyes off Lena and Older Rose.

"Christine, could I see the doll, please?" Older Dimitri asked, holding his hand out towards Christine as he walked towards her.

She reluctantly handed over the doll. He read the bottom of one of the feet, and silently handed the doll back to Lena. The three-year-old crushed it into he chest. Older Dimitri nodded in acknowledgment towards Anastasia.

"Food!" Ibrahim announced, breaking all the tension that had built up in the two open rooms.

The chaos just got worse with that simple word. The four little ones raced for the food, pushing aside everyone else in their quest for pizza. Quickly, though, the adults got them into a semi-reasonable line and after they were satisfied with their pickings, the four settled down in the living room.

Eventually, even those of us that had been dragged here by Adrian, got food and settled in the large living room. After the first round of pizza, Anastasia and David grabbed a 2-liter of Coke and then snuck off to her room.

It was an interesting experience, talking to the future version of yourself.

"So when do we get to meet the my future self?" Lissa asked, and a look was shared between Older Dimitri, Rose, and Sydney. Older Eddie became utterly engrossed in a piece of pepperoni out of nowhere.

"Tomorrow," Rose said. "If there's time. I'll check her - your - schedule later tonight and see if I can squeeze you in sometime. Being Queen isn't an easy job."

"I'm the Queen?" Lissa asked, astonished.

Rose nodded. "And Christian's King by marriage. All the other Royals were up in arms about the whole thing. But most of the storm's blown over." She waved a hand dismissively. "Shouldn't be too much of an issue, though, getting you in."

Lissa just nodded and went back to staring at her plate, obviously upset that she'd be one of the last few people to meet her future self. And on top of everything, I still wasn't sure why Adrian had brought us along. It seemed like he normally came a lone a lot, but why he chose now to do this with a rescue mission back home to get ready for was beyond me.

Dinner was cleaned up, and Anastasia and David resurfaced, the Coke bottle empty and crushed. David's cheeks were flushed with the signs of alcohol I had come to know all too well. Anastasia, on the other hand, was keeping the color in check.

"David's staying the night," Anastasia announced, flopping down on the ground next to Older Dimitri. "That alright with you, Comrade?"

"When you get sober, yes." Dimitri poked the end of her nose.

She slapped it away. "Bet?"

"Hundred that I don't hear you," he offered.

"I don't even have a hundred!" Anastasia cried.

"But I do," Ibrahim said with a very creepy tone. She just smiled up at him, obviously used to it.

"And what'll it be this time, a month in jail?" Anastasia seemed like she was joking, but it was hard to tell.

"So, a hundred or no?" Dimitri asked, poking Anastasia in the side a few times.

"Fine, fine, a hundred. But you owe me three bets, buster," Anastasia replied. Older Dimitri nodded.

"I am aware of that, yes."

"Ugh. You proposed to Miss Bitch and got all the fun sucked out of you. I don't know what I like more - Mister Happy Serioushead or Mister Grumpy Partyhead. As oxymoronic as that is."

"Oxymoronic isn't a word," David pointed out.

"Go take your fucking Soli and look it up in the dictionary. It's in there. Under 'oxymoron' there'll be 'oxymoronic', which is the adjective form of the former. And then underneath that will be 'moron' with the 'oxy' taken off, and your picture will be underneath it." Anastasia looked up at her boyfriend without expression in her face or eyes. If I thought Dimitri was good at the guardian face sober, Anastasia had him beat by a mile and half in her tipsy state. I was curious to see how she did it sober.

"Very funny." David pulled her up by the arms. "But you drank most of the Soli, not me. Which is why, despite the fact that you're not officially drunk yet, I'm giving you Tylenol and then sending you ass straight into bed. Colbert reruns or no Colbert reruns."

"You're so fucking wonderful, you know that, you asshole?" She smiled lazily up at him and let him lead her away.

"She makes more sense drunk than she does sober," Sydney noted dryly, which set everyone off into a round of hysterics.

All except my older self. But as I wiped away the tears that had formed from laughing too hard, I tried not to think about how much "Miss Bitch" fit future me.

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	6. Chapter 5

**Usual disclaimers apply.**

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The others had left by the time Anastasia shook me awake. Her messy dirty blonde hair fell down forwards, framing her face.

"Morning," she noted wryly. "Rose thought it'd be best for you and Dad to sleep in today and let the others go meet, well, the others. They left, like, three hours ago. Both Dimitris are upstairs." We had been shoved into the basement to sleep, making use of sleeping bags and training mats.

"C'mon," she said when I just blinked at her in response. "I'll be nice and cook whatever for you."

The girl certainly knew which buttons to push. I sat up and followed her upstairs, ruffling my hair and yawning.

"I'll lend you some clothes later," Anastasia said as was made our way to the kitchen. She looked me up and down a few times. "I think you're my size. I've probably got some old pair of jeans that are too short."

"How tall are you?" I asked, leaning against the kitchen island. Anastasia flicked the stove on.

"Five feet, ten inches." She paused. "That is the customary system, right?"

I nodded. "That's tall."

"Doctor says I'll probably be in between you and Dad. Six feet or so. David got Eddie's height, so he'll be taller than me at least. I hate being so tall. And with curves, too. It's like retail stores are out to discriminate us tall and curvy women. The works?"

I stared at her.

"Pancakes, eggs, sausage, OJ?" Anastasia clarified.

"Sure," I said.

She grabbed a jug out of the fridge and set it down on the counter. A pan with butter hit the stove before I had time to react.

"I multi-task like no one's business," Anastasia said, pouring what looked like batter from the jug in the pan. "So don't mind me working and talking."

"No problem," I said.

"So, anyway, if I were short like you or Babushka, then I'd easily be a size four or six. Two, if I wanted to squeeze my chest into a dress that tight. But because of the height, I'm a size ten. They don't make size fours for tall women. Or, at least, not with any of the designers I've worked with. Babushka numero dos says it's a curse us Belikov women have to endure."

"Rambling in three languages this early already?" David asked, shuffling up behind Anastasia. He slipped his arms around her waist as she flipped a pancake over.

"Don't you hate that I'm so ninja, I'm trilingual without blinking an eye?" Anastasia asked off-handedly. David chuckled, resting his chin on her shoulder.

"If you were a ninja, you wouldn't be telling me that you're a ninja," David pointed out.

"Did you ever think that maybe I would tell you I was a ninja so you would believe that crap that I wasn't a ninja and so therefore, thinking I wasn't a ninja, you wouldn't believe me when I told you I really was a ninja?" Anastasia put the pancake on a plate. "Want some, too?"

"You make my head hurt," David complained, kissing Anastasia's neck tenderly.

"Not in front of Rose!" Anastasia chastised. "If she sees this and remembers it, who knows what Miss Bitch will pull out later!"

David just groaned and nuzzled her temple. "I doubt Dimitri would let your mother lay in too thickly about me. It should be Andre she worries about."

"Oh shut up," Anastasia muttered, flipping the pancake over.

Breakfast was good - Anastasia ended up using all the batter to feed the five of us. Apparently Sydney took my future kids to a day school on the Court grounds and picked them up after putting them through a few hours of daycare. It explained the quietness.

"So why did Adrian pull all of us to-" Dimitri started to say, his flickering around the monochrome house. His older counterpart looked at the table, swirling the glass in his hand around in circles.

"Probably to show you guys what to fix. Personally, I wouldn't mind having raised Stasha here in America. If she were born at all." He looked at Anastasia, and she nodded. They seemed closer than Dimitri and I had ever been.

"So if you're Moroi, what element did you get blasted with?" I asked, curious.

"Spirit," Older Dimitri said quietly. Anastasia snorted. "But, for some reason, the other four are nearly as powerful as spirit."

"You get more modest with old age," Anastasia said. She turned her attention to my Dimitri and me. "He specialized in all of them and none of them. Meaning he's equally powerful in all five of them."

"They're bonded," David added, his voice quiet. My future eldest daughter elbowed him. Almost instinctively, she touched the back of her neck.

I wanted to know how, but being bonded myself, I knew what it was like for people to ask what the circumstances were for the bond to have formed. It was a rather touchy subject.

"I was three," Anastasia said softly, still staring at the table. "It was the only Strigoi that ever attacked me in Russia that I didn't kill. Instead, the tables were flipped - he ended up killing me.

"It was just barely sunset and Dimitri was trying to rush me home. We didn't exactly live in the wealthiest, cleanest part of the city in my early years. I was too mesmerized by the colors in th sky to realize the dangers of being out after dark. Just like in Moscow and Novosibirsk, Strigoi love prowling the streets for victims.

"Dimitri had raised me from the time I could open my eyes that going outside after sunset, unless you were older and had a stake, was a bad thing. If I was out with friends, I was to spend the night at their house if the sun had set by the time I was ready to come home.

"So while I was fighting against Dimitri, three of them came up behind us. They knew who he was - ever since falling from their graces when Robert dragged his soul back to this side, they've wanted him back - and they figured that I had been carried by the 'blood whore' and that he was the father. Raise me and change me.

"Two pounced Dimitri, who at that point had taken to slinging me over his shoulder. He lost his grip on me, and I hit the pavement head first before sliding around the corner of a building. The third Strigoi came into the alleyway and backed me into the far, dark corner. He snapped my spine in several spots."

Anastasia looked up to me, her eyes filled with emotion and betraying the stoic face she wore. She was really good at the guardian face.

"It's just a lot of blackness until I woke up on the couch in our apartment with Dimitri sitting right next to me, staring at me." Her lips quirked into the briefest of smiles. "That was the only time I ever saw Dimitri crying in front of me." She frowned.

"After I told him to stop worrying about me so much and that a hospital, what ever it was, wouldn't be necessary, I guess he figured we were bonded. All I remember from the aftermath of it was learning how to fight with a stake when I was seven and Lissa and Rose coming out for a quick weekend to explain to me what a bond was. I had no idea at the time that Rose was my mother. But that's a different story," Anastasia added. She finished off the rest of her eggs before the tension was broken.

"I'm sorry about not telling you," Older Dimitri murmured. Anastasia shrugged.

"Don't blame yourself too much. I know you had bigger worries than telling me that this was the woman who sent my birthday and Christmas present at the same time to save postage."

We lapsed into silence after that. My Dimitri and I would occasionally glance at each other, and David had started rubbing absent-minded circles into Anastasia's back, but nothing else really happened after that. When breakfast felt like it was over, I offered to help Anastasia out with the dishes.

"Was Dimitri the first Strigoi to be turned back?" I asked innocently.

"No," Anastasia said. "The guy who contacted his soul in limbo, Robert, he had turned one other Strigoi back. You even went as far as attempting a prison break for Victor Dashkov to help that dream come true. I don't know what the outcome was since nobody likes telling me anything anymore."

Past issues with Dimitri. That seemed to be an underlying thing with Anastasia.

"I did eventually meet the other guy who was changed back. He was fine and normal and had the same control over all five elements as my dad did. Must be a 'changed back' thing."

"Huh," I grunted.

Anastasia dropped a fork into the silverware basket in the door of the dishwasher with a loud clang.

"So how long have you and David been together?" I wasn't prying - if I was going to be here, I might as well learn as much as I could.

"Long enough," Anastasia muttered, color flushing in her pale cheeks.

I lightly bumped her hip with my own. "Spill, sister. Who knows when Adrian's going to whisk me back away."

"Three years. Give or take a few months. He helped me out with my conversational English when I first moved here. We're still working on the contractions. That's what we were doing last night when we slipped away."

"And added Coke and alcohol into the mix?" I asked with an all-knowing smile. Anastasia returned the grin and dumped the plates in.

"It loosens up the tongue," she admitted. "It was vodka and Coke, if you care to know."

"Vodka?" Disbelief rang out nice and clear in my tone.

"Rigth brand, sure it tastes great with Coke. You want to try it?" Anastasia asked. She shook her head. "Not in the day. It's better at night. Same with sex."

She seemed so much more open with me than future me. I idly wondered what happened in the future that shoved an unfriendly stick up my ass.

"'Same with sex'?" I echoed.

"What?" Anastasia raised an eyebrow and shut the dishwasher door. "I'm a Belikov, I'm fourteen as of today, and I've been with my horny boyfriend for three years. Do you really think I would stay a virgin for much longer?"

I had no answer for that.

"Besides, it's not like David has to worry about getting his hands on condoms. Though I'm sure Eddie would be more than happy to hand them over." She gave me a wry smile before flouncing out the kitchen.

I stared after her incredulously. My Dimitri came up behind me and kissed the top of my head.

"What's on your mind?" he murmured, running a hand through my hair.

"Who would've thunk it," I said, quoting an old movie I had seen years ago. "Our fourteen-year-old daughter's sexually active. And I though I needed help."

Dimitri just chuckled and moved in front of me, wrapping his arms around me. He pulled me close into him. It felt weird and good at the same time to be open about our relationship.

"That wouldn't surprise you if you knew more about my family," he said simply.

"Oh really?" I asked, looking up at him with my chin on his chest.

He nodded. "Belikov women have been known to deal with the blood whore business a lot. But that's just the beginning."

"Care to spill more about your dirty family?" I joked, and a corner of Dimitri's mouth slipped into a smile.

"Downstairs. I'll 'spill more about my dirty family'," Dimitri said. I could hear the air quotes. "But not before doing something I've been meaning to do for some time now."

He pulled me up into a passionate kiss that ended all too quickly.

"Mmm. I could get used to this, Dimitri, I really could."

Dimitri chuckled. "Kissing and gossip downstairs," he offered, his voice deep and husky.

"Throw in a few inappropriate touches and I'll happily oblige," I joked, and based on what his eyes showed, I knew he was thinking about our time in the cabin, too.

"You're too dangerous for my health," Dimitri murmured in my ear.

"Too bad I don't fall for pick-up lines that easily. Lucky you that I'm already too far in love with you for saving," I whispered. I automatically pressed into Dimitri harder and I could see him swallow back a moan.

"Let's go. Before I change my mind." He pulled away but took my hand, and we went downstairs.

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	7. AUTHOR'S NOTE

Wow. I can't believe I'm posting one of these things. But you'll see why.

I'm sorry to say that I'm taking a hiatus for the next few weeks. I've got college application stuff that's stressing my out to high holy hell and it's not like my parent's support (or lack thereof in this case) is making it any easier. On top of that, school is so fucking intense - I've got a 200 point project due on Monday I haven't even started on. And that's just the beginning.

I'm sad to put my stories on hold, I really am, but I'm so stressed I've developed a pretty serious case of insomnia. Which means that I've got half of chapters written, but they're not where near complete or publishable. :(

I really wish I could continue writing, but the truth is that a break is necessary. I'll be back in a few weeks with chapters and plot twists ready to go, but I'm so drained from everything that it's 6.51 PM as I write this and I'm ready to fall over.

My rant is over. :) This is all just to say (and explain why) I won't be updating for a little while. I'm going to try and calm my nerves as soon as I can and get back into my stories. When I update next time, I'm going to replace it with this. :) So if you see a repeat of "Jaro-ship put up Chapter #", that's why.

I love all of you (and your reviews, especially you consistent people with TWBAR), and I can't wait to get back when I'm ready.

Love,

Jaro-ship


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